


The Growing Game

by Sneeze_Meister



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - School, Childhood Friends, Falling In Love, First Love, Friends to Lovers, Light Angst, M/M, Making Love, One Shot, Slice of Life, Underage Drinking, mentions sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-24
Updated: 2014-06-24
Packaged: 2018-02-06 01:08:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1838857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sneeze_Meister/pseuds/Sneeze_Meister
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Armin and Eren were little, they played the game called the Growing Game, where they measured to see who was taller. When they were little, Armin usually won it, but then as they grew older, Eren grew faster. As they grew they began drifting apart, until Armin got accepted to a prestigious university in England and has to leave. Then they play the growing game one last time...</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Growing Game

**Author's Note:**

> Now then, I don't consider the sex to be underage because it's after they graduate from high school.
> 
> If you think it's still underage, you have been warned.
> 
> Anyway, some slice of life eremin stuff or something.

"Do you remember the Growing Game, Armin?" Eren asked, brushing some hair behind the blonde's ear. The roar of the train was getting closer and closer, and Eren's grip on Armin's wrist was tight. It was as if his very bones were locked in place, trying to prevent Armin from leaving the country; from leaving him.

Armin had remembered the Growing Game. Those were the days, back in his young childhood. They were about five or six when Eren had invented it. The brunette was always very competitive, and comparing heights to other boys was certainly something he'd get a kick out of doing. Armin had decided to play along, since he loved seeing Eren look so excited.

"Come on, Armin! Let's go inside!" Eren had yelled, gripping the blonde's hand with his tiny fist and dragging him inside his house. Armin had stumbled to keep up.

"What are we doing?" he asked as they went past Eren's mother washing dishes. She glanced at them, then continued wiping a plate clean. Eren gave Armin a grin.

"I call it: The Growing Game," he told him as he led Armin into his room. Eren's room was very different from Armin's. The walls were painted a dark blue instead of a sky one, and instead of bookshelves lining against the walls, posters of athletes were taped hastily onto the walls. Eren's floor was very cluttered; Armin's was bare. While the blonde noted all the differences, Eren rummaged around in his toy box. Armin was just about to help him when Eren triumphantly shoved a fist full of magic markers in the air.

"What are you gonna do with those?" Armin asked, tilting his head. Eren turned to the boy, the grin still on his face.

"Press against the wall, and make sure your heels are against it, too!" Eren commanded, marching over to him. Armin did as he was told. "Stand up straight!"

Eren leaned close to Armin, uncapping a marker and moving his hand above the blonde's head. Armin closed his eyes and breathed in Eren's grassy scent. It calmed him, somewhat.

"There!" cried Eren as he leaned away. Armin turned to see what Eren had done. There was a purple mark where Armin had once been standing. He reached his hand out and poked it. The wall was cool beneath his fingers.

"You measured my height?" he asked. Eren nodded.

"Yeah! I hope you don't mind that I used purple," he said. Armin shook his head.

"No, purple's a nice color."

"Great! Now my turn!" Eren walked over to the wall and pressed himself against the wall like Armin did. He handed Armin a dark green marker, and the boy leaned in close to Eren, breathing in his scent again as he marked where the top of Eren's head was. He lingered a moment longer, then pulled away. Eren turned to see the wall. The purple mark was slightly higher than the green one.

"I'm taller than you," Armin said. Eren pouted, sticking his tongue out at Armin. Armin gave him a bright smile, laughing slightly. Eren was such a sore loser.

"Just you wait, Armin! I'm gonna be so taller than you that you'll be lookin' at a giant!" Eren said, his eyes ablaze. Armin's smiled widened.

"I can't wait for that!" he said.

As the years passed since the invention of the Growing Game, the marks had gotten higher and higher on the wall, until finally, Eren's ambition came through. In the beginning of sixth grade, Eren went through a growth spurt, and came a full inch taller than Armin, which he loved to point out whenever he could. Armin tolerated his boasting; he was secretly plotting to get taller than Eren again at some point, anyway.

As middle school went on, they both began forming different interests. Armin's love of books and knowledge only grew, and Eren's love of physical activity got him to join many sports teams, until finally he stuck to soccer. Because Eren was busy with sports, they didn't hang out as much as they used to in their elementary years.

One day, Mikasa stumbled across Armin sitting on a park bench, reading alone. She pursed her lips, her disapproval obvious.

"Where's Eren?" she had asked. Armin looked up from his book to glance at her.

"Soccer practice," he replied. Mikasa frowned.

"I thought you two were practically glued together."

"I guess we were. He has practice and I have studies, though."

"Why can't you visit him at practice? I'm sure Eren would love that."

Armin thought for a moment. "Hm, I guess I could do that. Thank you, Mikasa."

"Don't mention it."

The next time Eren had practice, Armin sat on the bleachers, a lunchbox in one hand. He watched as Eren raced across the field, kicking the ball along with him. Armin noticed the small details of Eren. How deep and even his breaths were as he went, the way his eyes concentrated on anything that was in his gaze. Armin's heart pounded faster, and he slowly put a hand to it, pretending that it was Eren's heart he was feeling.

During the break, Armin had gotten off the bleachers and walked over to Eren, lunchbox in hand. Eren's other teammates took notice of Armin there before Eren did, and Connie, one of the fastest runners, elbowed him. Eren looked up and saw Armin walking towards him and flashed a smile. Armin's heart accelerated in pace again.

"I decided I'd drop by," Armin said, giving Eren a small smile.

"Great to see you here," Eren said. Armin opened the lunchbox.

"I know how hungry you get after exercising, so I decided to make you a lunch," Armin explained, taking out a water bottle and a sandwich container. There was an apple in there, too. The other teammates looked at each other and snickered. Connie whispered in Eren's ear as the brunette took the lunchbox's contents, and his cheeks turned crimson.

"Uh, Armin, can I talk to you for a moment?" Eren asked, putting the food back in the lunchbox.

"Sure," Armin said. Eren walked a little ways away from the rest of the group, and Armin followed.

"Listen, Armin... I appreciate you coming here and making me lunch and all, but the guys are kinda..." Eren trailed off, scratching the back of his neck.

"Kinda what, Eren?" Armin asked. Then he blinked. "Wait, you mean...? Eren, I thought your image never bothered you before."

"That's what I thought, too, but..." Eren sighed. "Just, don't come back here, okay?"

"Are we still friends?" Armin asked, his voice completely even.

"What? Of course we're still friends," Eren told him, flashing the blonde a smile. "I just don't want you to see me suck at practicing, okay?"

After that conversation, Eren had hugged Armin with one arm and jogged back to the others. Armin watched him go. The way Eren gritted his teeth when he said the last sentence tipped off Armin that he was lying. Eren always gritted his teeth when he was lying.

Even after that happened, however, they still played the Growing Game the following day. Armin's goal to be taller than Eren again was looking like a failure, but he still had hope.

Once high school began, their electives were completely different. Armin was taking a creative writing and art course, while Eren was doing more physical education. Because of how well he played, colleges were keeping an eye on him, which meant that Eren had to work harder and spend more time away from Armin. Colleges were looking at Armin, too, but somehow the boy still had time to feel lonely.

Armin felt that his love for Eren was completely one-sided, but that couldn't be farther from the truth. Eren had feelings for Armin, too, but there were so many emotions and thoughts that were whirling inside his head that the brunette couldn't think straight. Whenever they happened to walk home together, Eren had tried to express himself but found that he couldn't. The fear of being rejected stopped him from making any sort of advancement. The same went for Armin, as well. So they both just gazed longingly at each other when the other wasn't looking.

Three more sets of marks on Eren's wall later, and it was finally time for graduation. Armin graduated as valedictorian, and Eren as the star athlete. A few days before, Armin had filled out an application to get into a prestigious university in England. He had given up on any hope of Eren loving him back, and decided that getting away from the problem would be best.

Connie announced that he was having a huge graduation party, and that both of them were invited. The party date was a week from that day, and it was said that it was going to be wild. That same day, Armin got his letter of acceptance back from the university. He was going to tell Eren the great news, but decided against it at the last minute. Instead, he discussed it with Mikasa, and she fully supported Armin to go out and chase his dreams, although she was going to miss him.

On the night of the party, Connie convinced Eren to get drunk. Sasha also managed to convince Armin to get a little more than tipsy, and while dancing, both of the boys bumped into each other. Under the influence of the alcohol, they both danced together, staring into each other's eyes.

"Please tell me I'm reading this right," Armin whispered as a slow song was about to end. Eren spun the smaller boy around, and then pressed them closer together. Eren leaned in and met his lips with Armin's, whose eyes fluttered shut. Maybe this love was possible after all.

Following their heavy make out session, Eren led Armin into one of the unoccupied guest rooms. The door closed, and soon their clothes had made their way to the floor.

All of Armin's most hidden desires had been fulfilled that night. The darkness had swallowed them whole, giving them the opportunity to gently caress each other's skin, to let bruises form on Armin's fragile and soft white skin. The night was peaceful, and sleep overcame them.

In the morning, golden rays of light shone on Armin's face, and he awoke with a start. When he sat up, he noticed that he wasn't clothed and that Eren was lightly snoring next to him. Armin's eyes had widened, and he had quickly slipped on his clothes, telling himself that he had made the biggest mistake of his life right then; that it was only the alcohol that made Eren do the things that he did.

When Eren awoke, he felt bare and cold. Looking over, he saw that Armin was no longer by his side. He had left. Did everything last night really happen? He asked himself. When he put back on his clothes, he went to Armin's house, but he wasn't there.

Retreating back home, Eren had ran into Mikasa, who told him that today was the day that Armin would being leaving for England. After getting Mikasa to tell him where Armin was going to be leaving town, he quickly raced that way. Was this really how their relationship was going to end?

As his feet pounded the pavement, Eren had come to terms with himself. This love for Armin never was a phase, and it had been with him ever since he could remember. He needed to know that Armin felt the same way, too; that it wasn't just a one night stand.

Finally, Eren had arrived at the train station.

_You don't know, do you?_

He looked all around him.

At last, his eyes caught the sight of familiar blonde hair. Eren pushed and shoved past people until he was behind Armin. He grabbed the boy by the shoulder and he turned to face him. Armin's eyes widened.

"Eren?" he had asked.

And that's when Eren had asked the question.

_"Do you remember the Growing Game?"_  
 _  
_"Of course I do," Armin replied, his eyes displaying a deep level of sadness.

"Then please," Eren began. "play the game with me one last time."

Armin stared into his eyes for the longest time, the train getting closer and closer. Finally, it stopped in front of them, and people pushed past them to board. Armin didn't move, and Eren's hand squeezed Armin's wrist.

"Anything for you," Armin finally whispered. Eren only nodded, and together they headed back to Eren's home.

As Eren measured Armin's height, Armin could smell the grass scent that still clung to Eren. Eren pulled away after marking the wall, and Armin felt surprisingly empty when he wasn't near him anymore. Then it was Armin's turn to measure, and he knew, even before making the mark, that Eren would be taller than him.

Eren studied the wall for a moment. All those years of marking were on that very wall right there. The tradition had been there ever since they were friends, practically.

"Please don't leave me," Eren whispered, and Armin almost thought he had imagined it.

"Do you love me?" Armin had asked instead of answering Eren's statement. There was a pause.

"Of course I do."

"...I love you, too."

They stayed like that for a while, standing and watching the wall, as if the marks would escape and erase the proof of all the years they spent together if their eyes weren't trained on them. They stayed like that for so long that they seemed to have turned into porcelain dolls. Eren was wondering what Armin was thinking about, and Armin was thinking about what it would be like, if he stayed.

_The moon would cast its reflected light onto the bed as we lay there. We don't say a word, only stare up at the ceiling, as if it could tell us the answers to the universe. Eren would fall asleep first, and I would take his hand in my own and press the back of it against my cold cheek, turning it warm. He would mumble my name in his sleep, and my eyes would slowly focus on his peaceful face, his lips parted and his hair tousled_.  
 _  
_Armin left for England the following day. Eren respected his wish to depart, to sort his life out, because Armin would return. He promised he would.

Life went on, as it always did, but everytime Eren would pass by the marks, he would think about the small blonde boy who he grew up with. He would think about running his hands through that soft hair and caressing his doll-like cheek. He would think about that night as well, and need would seem to burn a hole through his chest.

Even though life went on, Eren would still go to the train station and wait everyday, searching through the crowd to try and find those familiar blonde locks.

_That in a crowded place; my eyes will always search for you._


End file.
